


Death Flag

by JohnBurtonLee



Category: Dreaming of Sunshine - Silver Queen
Genre: Gen, POV Jiraiya
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-26
Updated: 2021-02-26
Packaged: 2021-03-16 22:00:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,089
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29707167
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JohnBurtonLee/pseuds/JohnBurtonLee
Summary: One possible reaction if Shikako sees signs that Asuma's character arc is coming to a close.
Comments: 26
Kudos: 388
Collections: Heliocentrism — a Dreaming of Sunshine recursive collection





	Death Flag

**Author's Note:**

> I was reading the comments for [Back and Forth](https://archiveofourown.org/works/28931571) when this came to me.

"Jiraiya!" 

The sannin didn't wince at hearing Shikako's voice, but he was certainly tempted. She wasn't high on the list of people he wanted stopping him on the street; the girl meant well, but the only reason she wasn't the worst trouble magnet he had ever heard of was because he knew Naruto. "Is something the matter?" he asked as he turned to see her and her twin. 

"Yes," said the little menace at the same time her brother said "No." 

Jiraiya suppressed a sigh. "You first," he said as he pointed at Shikako. 

"Asuma has a death flag," she said seriously. 

Shikamaru looked like he wanted to palm his face, but was just a tad too lazy to bother moving his arms. "I keep telling you there's no such thing as a death flag." 

"Look, Jiraiya, if you wrote a sequel to Icha Icha Brotherhood starring Ryu-" 

"Why were you reading one of this pervert's books?" 

"I read every Icha Icha when it comes out in case I need to threaten Kakashi-sensei with spoilers." Jiraiya revised his estimates of the girl's ruthlessness up several notches. "Anyway, imagine a third of the way through the sequel you introduce a childhood friend of Ryu's who as far as he knows is so innocent that she still has never been kissed." 

"You've never been kissed, and you aren't innocent." 

Shikako ignored her brother and continued, "And she gives Ryu a package from her late father saying she'll explain the contents once she gets back from her mission but she doesn't have time now. Does she live through the mission?" 

"Ryu from Brotherhood? Considering his background…, yeah, she's as dead as-" 

"The sales from your first book?" Shikako looked annoyingly innocent when she said that, which just told Jiraiya that despite popular belief, she didn't actually learn how to troll from her Jounin sensei. (Though Kakashi certainly didn't help.) 

"Cheeky brat." 

Shikamaru rolled his eyes. "Fine. Death flags might exist in fiction, but not real life." 

"Hear me out. You've got the mentor figure to a secondary character-" 

"Oi!" 

Shikako gave her brother a flat look. "Shika, you don't even _want_ to be the protagonist of your own life. Your goal in life is to be a background character. Average wife, carefree retirement playing shogi, sound familiar?" 

"...Fair enough." 

"Anyway, you've got the son of deceased Hokage, who has finally come to terms with his estranged relationship with and death of his father with the help of his secret girlfriend-" 

"Asuma and Kurenai are not dating," Shikamaru ground out. Jiraiya bit back a laugh. That was some pretty impressive denial going there. 

"One, you knew exactly who I was talking about when I said it. Two, Team Eight is full of sensory specialists and listen carefully to what they _don't_ say when talking about Asuma and Kurenai. Three, _I'm_ a sensory specialist. Do not ask me for evidence on this because I'll give it to you." 

Shikamaru took an actual step back at that. "I'm good." 

"Now said mentor figure has basically completed his character arc and is now giving cryptic questions to his prized pupil-" 

"Asuma likes us all equally." 

Shikako put her fists on her hips and fixed her twin with a stare. " _Prized pupil_." 

Yeah, Jiraiya wasn't going to touch that argument. "Cryptic questions?" he asked, because Asuma wasn't that kind of guy. He could be a tight mouthed bastard, but if he wasn't going to tell you something he'd just change the subject or straight up tell you he wasn't going to tell you. 

Shikako made a "go on" gesture at her brother, who sighed and said "He asked me who the king piece in shogi represents if it's not the Hokage." 

"That does seem a bit out of character," Jiraiya allowed. 

Shikako shook her head. "But it makes perfect sense if you know that Kurenai is pregnant, so obviously Asuma is thinking of the new baby as his king piece to be protected." 

"Kurenai is what?" Shikamaru sputtered. 

" _Sensor_." 

Yeah, that was utter bullshit. 

"And finally someone is hunting down the members of the Twelve Guardian Ninja Asuma served with and he's the only one left alive." 

Jiraiya exhaled sharply. "Shit. You're right. He's got a death flag." 

Shikamaru looked back and forth between the two. "Of all the troublesome superstitious nonsense-" 

"No time for your skepticism, brat. We need to bring this up to Tsunade." 

"Bring what up with baa-chan?" Naruto said, dropping from a nearby roof. 

"Asuma's got a death flag," Shikako said, turning to him. 

Shikamaru rubbed his face with one hand. "Don't go polluting his head with your nonsense. For some reason the idiot trusts you." 

Sadly, as far as Jiraiya could tell, that reason was treating Naruto like a regular human being and that basically earned Shikako his godson's undying loyalty. Thankfully, she had never actually used that trust except to bludgeon Naruto into studying or taking better care of himself, something that she seemed to get some sadistic enjoyment out of. Well, there were worse vices. 

One quick recap had Naruto scratching his head. "Are you sure that Asuma's not the protagonist who is going to use the power of family to come from behind in an impossible fight?" 

Shikako waved her hands in negation. "Throw Konohamaru into the mix. In the sequel he'd be the future Hokage's disciple. Do you think his story would work with Asuma alive?" Jiraiya was impressed with the utter sincere belief that Shikako had that Naruto would become Hokage one day. Frankly she had more faith that Jiraiya did on that subject, though maybe it made more sense if she believed in the power of narrative and that Naruto was an idiot protagonist. All that was without knowing about Naruto's parentage and the prophecy. 

Hopefully. Anyone else, Jiraiya would be able to say for sure there wasn't a chance, but Shikako had the uncanny ability to form correct conclusions from minimal data. He'd have to evaluate later how many of her conclusions fit inside a narrative framework, though. 

Blissfully oblivious to any number of secrets surrounding him, Naruto stood stock still for a few seconds. Jiraiya loved Naruto, but the visible effort thinking didn't bode well if he did become Hokage. Suddenly his godson pointed at Shikako. "Asuma's got a death flag!" 

Shikamaru threw his hands in the air. Well, "threw" sounds a lot more energetic than what he actually did. "I give up. Don't blame me when Tsunade laughs you out of her office." 


End file.
